August 1st, it's my mother's birthday. A few relatives came by to celebrate. There was some food prepared, however since we didn't really set up a party-like event, we just had food that are normally prepared for birthdays, in this case Pansit (I think you can call it noodles in english). Coincidentally, some close family friends from Montreal passed by to say hello from wherever they came from, so we told them to stay for a bit and eat. It would of been awesome if I had the chance to spend a lot of our time with them during this vacation, unfortunately our schedules did not really match.
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| (Mom's Birthday Cake) |
Friday we went to do a little bit of shopping. I gotta thank my kuya Gomer (Kuya is what you normally call an older brother, you do not need to be blood related, it is very common in Asia) who drove us practically anywhere we wanted to go throughout our stay in the Philippines.
Sunday we had a sudden "get together" with my relatives from my mother's side and all ate breakfast at McDonald's. Apparently, the reasoning for this is because it was my aunt's birthday who lives in Spain, so the plan was to celebrate while they are celebrating too as if we are having the occasion together. We were suppose to eat at Jolibee but the second floor was in construction, so there was no space for us there. Heck, we pretty much filled out the whole second floor. Right after this, since it was our last week, as a family we also decided to visit my late grandparents, from my mother's side, for the last time. In the afternoon, my cousins accompanied me and my brother to a couple of shopping malls to do some final purchases since we were going to leave in three days.
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| (Rice and Chicken at McDonald's) |
The day has come, the day we part. I felt fine, until the moment I had to say my goodbyes. I did not expect my heart to beat this way, I was feeling very emotional. Tears did not drop, but my heart did. Seeing my little cousins suddenly speechless and just immobile got me very emotional and broken deep down. (The picture does not really show the whole family, but those in the picture are those who were able to send us off on our last moments in front of our "Home" and stay in the Philippines.)
I have mixed emotions. I knew this was going to happen. Before coming in the Philippines, I was not very excited. Nearing the end time I have in The Philippines, I was somewhat excited that I would be returning to Montreal, but in the same time really sad that I was leaving. I actually felt "at home". Back then, when Iused to visit this country, it just felt more like a vacation, but this time, it felt more than that, as if I lived there or can get used to living there. It's hard to explain. I do not know if it's because we have our own house now, but I simply felt at home.
We arrived safely in Montreal. I felt fine, until my first night came. I suddenly had this rush of mixed emotions. Similar to those I had right before parting. But this is life. No matter how far apart we are from each other or the many years it may take for all of us to reunite, they will always be close by. It's funny how I did not really want to visit about a month ago. But I am sure God had his reasons. We learn and realize new things as the day go by, and I am glad I ended up going back there. I made new memories I will not forget. I definitely miss them, and I cannot wait until the day we meet again.
"Every parting gives a foretaste of death, every reunion a hint of the resurrection." - Arthur Schopenhauer
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